Require new hires to sign a form denying cronyism (Comments)"Obama will issue an executive order asking all new hires at the agencies to sign a form affirming that no political appointee offered them the job solely on the basis of political affiliation or contribution." — Obama's Blueprint for Change

Create White House team to improve federal programs (Comments)"Barack Obama and Joe Biden will create a focused team within the White House that will work with agency leaders and the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to improve results and outcomes for federal government programs while eliminating waste and inefficiency." — Obama's "The Change We Need In Washington"

Appoint at least one Republican to his cabinet (Comments)Interview with Steve Kroft of "60 Minutes": Question: "Will there be Republicans in the Cabinet?" Obama: "Yes." Question: "More than one?" Obama: "You're not getting any more out of me." — Interview with "60 Minutes," Nov. 16, 2008

They (lobbyists) won't work in my White House (Comments)“They (lobbyists) won’t work in my White House… They are not going to dominate my White House…. You will not be able to go lobby for an industry that you regulated, and I won’t hire somebody into my administration regulating the industry he or she worked for.” — 12/15/2007, Waterloo, Iowa

Appoint a senior Native American policy adviser (Comments)"I'll appoint an American Indian policy adviser to my senior White House staff to work with tribes. I'll host an annual summit at the White House with tribal leaders to come up with an agenda that works for tribal communities." — 5/19/08, Crow Agency, Mont.

Hire based on merit (Comments)"When it comes to hiring people in my administration, the litmus test that will apply will not be based on party or ideology or who's traded the most favors, but on qualifications and experience. We're going to have experienced, competent people in the White House." — 05/19/08 Billings, Mont.

Eliminate unnecessary middle managers (Comments)"Barack Obama will thin the ranks of Washington middle managers, freeing up resources both for deficit reduction and for increasing the number of frontline workers." — Obama's "The Change We Need In Washington"